Actor Helena Bonham Carter has embodied many roles throughout her career, from the Queen of England (Henry VIII; The King's Speech) to an animated corpse in love (The Corpse Bride). I Love Libraries is a massive fan of her work, but its her latest role that’s really caught our attention. It was announced yesterday that Bonham Carter has been named president of the London Library, the prestigious 181-year-old private library in St. Jame’s Square in central London. She will be the library’s first female president.
In announcing Bonham Carter’s new position, the library said it selected the actor as president for her creativity and connections with literature and stories. "With a passion for books and stories, and a long-standing love of the library, Helena is ideally placed to promote this tremendous resource for the creative and curious," said London Library director Philip Marshall.
Bonham Carter has been linked to many prominent past London Library members throughout her acting career. In 1985, she played Lucy Honeychurch in the film adaptation of the novel A Room with A View, written by the library's former vice president, E.M. Forster. In 2012, she played Miss Havisham in an adaptation of founding member Charles Dickens's Great Expectations. She has also played Eudoria Holmes in the Enola Holmes films based on characters created by library member Arthur Conan Doyle.
Bonham Carter has been a member of the library since 1986. She takes the position of president over from Sir Tim Rice, a British author and lyricist. Her role at the library will involve working on the library's emerging writers and school programs.
"The library is truly a place like no other, inspiring and supporting writers for over 180 years, many of whom have in some way informed my own career and those of actors everywhere,” Bonham Carter said. "The library's unique resources, history, and membership help to connect the literary greats of the past with those of the future."
Photo: Sane Seven
